Total War Center Forums - Political Academyhttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/
Use this forum to discuss political theory in the abstract, as opposed to particular events or individuals.enTue, 03 Mar 2015 18:25:56 GMTvBulletin60http://www.twcenter.net/forums/images/y2skin/misc/rss.pngTotal War Center Forums - Political Academyhttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/
ISIS wants the West to invade Syria; should we oblige them?http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?682886-ISIS-wants-the-West-to-invade-Syria-should-we-oblige-them&goto=newpost
Tue, 03 Mar 2015 15:39:59 GMTj8X9QwE3_7w
Who ever said that Fox News was nothing but bad reporting and a...

Who ever said that Fox News was nothing but bad reporting and a conservative echo chamber? :surprise:

Graeme Wood of The Atlantic brings up some excellent points here, one of which is the determination of ISIS to bring about the apocalypse by having us invade the Middle East once again. In addition to exacerbating the situation and allowing ISIS to gain more recruits and sympathy from Sunnis sitting on the fence of this issue, such a thing would be Iraq 2.0 in that we would once again drain our resources in the amount of trillions of dollars, plus lives lost. Wood doesn't explicitly say so, but he basically agrees with Obama's strategy here of providing precision airstrikes against ISIS with nearby Arab allies like Jordan and the UAE, in support of local ground forces like the Kurds, FSA, Iraqi military, etc. He estimates that over time ISIS, isolated with no real allies and hemmed in on every border, will whither away economically as a failed experiment, eroding the confidence of the jihadist and khalifa movement.

What do you guys think?

Do you think we should follow Wood's strategy here?

Or gloriously hasten the apocalypse by amassing our Crusader force at Dabiq? :tongue:

]]>Political AcademyRoma_Victrixhttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?682886-ISIS-wants-the-West-to-invade-Syria-should-we-oblige-themIs Benjamin Netanyahu right about Iran starting nuclear war, if they ever developed nukes?http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?682418-Is-Benjamin-Netanyahu-right-about-Iran-starting-nuclear-war-if-they-ever-developed-nukes&goto=newpost
Sat, 28 Feb 2015 02:44:40 GMTPvXfnulloZM
In this interview hosted by Bill Maher back in 2013, Netanyahu...

In this interview hosted by Bill Maher back in 2013, Netanyahu argues that Iran cannot be viewed like the Soviet Union, which was sensible enough not to start a nuclear war with the United States and NATO during the Cold War era. He argues that the Iranian regime headed by its supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is not a reasonable or sensible party because of their apocalyptic beliefs about the return of Mahdi, the savior, in Shia Islam. Netanyahu argues that the Iranian government would have no problem with immediately instigating nuclear war because of their firm beliefs in a better afterlife for them should all of them die from nuclear retaliation (MAD, Mutually Assured Destruction). What do you guys think? Do you think the Iranians are level-headed enough to handle the awesome responsibility of having nuclear weapons, should that ever happen? Or are they pure extremists who can't wait to start a nuclear war that would blow Israel and Iran off the face of the Earth, in a fallout event that would endanger the whole planet? Mind you, even in worst case scenarios, as described here and here, most of humanity would be okay, but still, it would be extremely bleak.

We don't necessarily need to discuss current events and the Obama White House engaging in talks with Iran presently (about regular international monitoring of their uranium enrichment program in return for a lift of sanctions). Instead, this thread should be used to discuss the intentions, motivations, goals, etc. of Iran. ;) Is this just a bunch of rhetoric for the next election cycle by Bibi, considering how Israel and Iran are open enemies fighting via proxies like Hezbollah? Or is there a grain of truth here that those in power in Iran are truly psychotic apocalyptic genocidal nutcases with their finger ready to hit the red button?

]]>Political AcademyRoma_Victrixhttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?682418-Is-Benjamin-Netanyahu-right-about-Iran-starting-nuclear-war-if-they-ever-developed-nukesMuslim Immigrants :Dhttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?682035-Muslim-Immigrants-D&goto=newpost
Wed, 25 Feb 2015 14:48:40 GMTHi, new HERE TO the mudpit,
Just wanted to ask if it is true that places...

Hi, new HERE TO the mudpit,

Just wanted to ask if it is true that places like Britain and Sweden, are having really large Muslims immigration problems. If that's true, is it causing friction between the Muslims and the native Europeans?

Also if it's true, would that mean there is any truth to the whole "police afraid to arrest muslims for fear of being called racists" thing I've been hearing about?

Essentially, is the concept the perfect explanation to why, particularly in modern society, Marxism is so widely denounced and never contemplated as realistic, or
is it a complete evasion of accepting Marxist criticism? Is it similar to the religious argument the religious argument that "God does not have to explain" in the sense
it offers no actual answer is provided? Can the Proletariat support Capitalism out of pure rationality, or are they really being manipulated?

The idea has certainly got me thinking recently.

]]>Political AcademyAreMacSeehttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?681916-False-Class-ConciousnessShould constitutions protect a right to violent rebellion?http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?681837-Should-constitutions-protect-a-right-to-violent-rebellion&goto=newpost
Tue, 24 Feb 2015 06:07:41 GMTEven supposedly liberal developed nations have in the last 50 years done some...

Even supposedly liberal developed nations have in the last 50 years done some terrible things like denying minorities voting rights and free speech, unethical human experimentation (mostly on minorities) and murdering peaceful protestors. Democracy didn't prevent these things because the majority of people often supported them. These things stopped happening only very recently.

I don't believe anyone should be expected to protest against things like this. Protesting is fine for mundane politics. But if your government murdered your family by injecting them with diseases (the Americans did a lot of this) or had a death squad fake their murder by members of another ethnic group in order to stir up ethnic hatred (the British did a lot of this), then your government is morally equivalent to the Nazis and should be dealt with in the same way. Again, I can't think of one developed country that hasn't done such things in the last 50 years.

I think an ideal democratic constitution would prevent citizens being prosecuted for killing certain members of the government if the rights outlined in the constitution are being abused.

that claims that more and more Kosovars abandon their country to go to western Europe. Obviously the country is and will stay on perilous economic condition(one of the few third world countries of Europe). So a question rises: Why Kosovo and Albania do not unify? Not that Albania is a prosperous nation but it has access to sea and certainly that option would be better for Kosovars. Is there a treaty or something that forbits that possibility? What if both sides want to unify?

]]>Political AcademyPapayhttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?681821-Why-Albania-does-not-want-to-annex-KosovoIts very good to be a citizen of Saudi Arabia right now, cash bonues are raining all over the place!!..http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?681151-Its-very-good-to-be-a-citizen-of-Saudi-Arabia-right-now-cash-bonues-are-raining-all-over-the-place!!&goto=newpost
Fri, 20 Feb 2015 16:23:44 GMThttp://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/20/world/middleeast/saudi-king-unleashes-a-torren...

]]>Political AcademyThe Noble Lordhttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?681151-Its-very-good-to-be-a-citizen-of-Saudi-Arabia-right-now-cash-bonues-are-raining-all-over-the-place!!Future of PRC/Taiwan relationshttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?680231-Future-of-PRC-Taiwan-relations&goto=newpost
Sun, 15 Feb 2015 00:07:04 GMTWhat do you guys think will be the future of cross-strait relations in the long...

What do you guys think will be the future of cross-strait relations in the long term? Do you guys think the status-quo will remain indefinitely, perhaps Taiwan will be dejure independent some day, or if the PRC has a chance of regaining Taiwan in the coming decades?

Given the 13 year old conflict in the Afghan war, and the talks about "peace" at home, and bringing the troops home from Afghanistan and stopping the war, is this really justified?

Pulling out from Iraq gave margin and room for ISIS to flourish. Which gave a big increase in violence in middle east ironically, this after giving in to demands of "peace now" people, violence increased.

Breaking the equilibrium of USA presence in Afghanistan wouldn't be dangerous to the equlibrium of the whole world situation?

Don't get me wrong, I know the army can operate in the field in better or worse days, regarding the civilians, and internal affairs to improve efficacy of its functioning is always a given, but from a larger strategic point, isn't USA retreating from Afghanistan a recipe for disaster?

I'm not as familiar with middle eastern conflicts as some users here are or appear to be, but talks of ending Afghan war appear and exist, perhaps with good intentions, but wouldn't such a retreat ironically increase the amount of war in the region and give more room for rampanging terrorists?

Not to mention ISIS gaining more ground to invade and expand into Afghan territory there. There is the possibility, even if they aren't that much big as of now, and Iran is in the middle, with this type of guys you never know what networking they pull of.

And the already sacrified lives of US soldiers.

I personally think that USA presence in Afghanistan, even if some people want it less intense, should be to stay, but I'm just a civilian, and I would like to discuss the opinions of people in both sides.

Withdrawal from Iraq and birth of ISIL taught us a very bitter lesson, retreating from Afghanistan, is it really good for USA in the long run?

Not to mention it is the place where (1) battle of tora bora happened, with a chance to get Bin Laden as a KIA, (2) borders with Pakistan, where Bin Laden was hiding, and a breeding ground for extremist ideas in some matters, and a hostile country who possesses a nuke and agressivity with India.

So, taking a withdrawal from Afghanistan would actually increase the amount of violence in the world, even if "peace now" opinions might have good intentions. This is my opinion, as someone not totally informed about the conflict.

Keep in mind Afghanistan had legit Al Qaeda and Bin Laden presence there, so its a different war from Iraq, in terms of political mischief, in my limited view as a civilian. Afghanistan appears to have legit strategic value, if some modus operandi on US troops there want a change or not, it's another issue.

What are your opinions? To stay? To fight? To leave? To repeat the "hippies vietnam" thing? What do you think? Share opinions here, what do you think should be done and why.

Killings of the civilian population - military tactics, especially if terrorists/soldiers/guerrillas hide among this population and hide the weapon there". Almost all armies do it, but to them it usually forgive, but only us, Israelis, constantly hypocritically and unfairly abuse for it :thumbsdow:thumbsdow and don't allow to protect themselves. Why at non Jews this double anti-Semitic standard is accepted? Actually, even threefold, because Israel - one of the softest armies of the world: we often refuse bombardments and attacks of the Arab cities and villages with terrorists, often we warn the civilian population about attacks (though it rescues terrorists), we treat wounded citizens. Tell, why such anti-Jewish injustice?

]]>Political AcademyBruriyahttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?679746-One-question-about-Arab-Israeli-conflictOliver Cromwell: The English version of Taliban?http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?679694-Oliver-Cromwell-The-English-version-of-Taliban&goto=newpost
Sun, 08 Feb 2015 23:17:59 GMTWhat do you think? The man was a religious puritan who banned theaters,...

What do you think? The man was a religious puritan who banned theaters, christmas etc and started a genocidal war against catholics in Ireland(not that catholics didnt killed protestants..)and tried to pacify great britain with the help of religion. A very controversial figure although to be honest he did not started the catholic vs protestant conflict neither he was responsible for the king vs parliament conflict

]]>Political AcademyPapayhttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?679694-Oliver-Cromwell-The-English-version-of-TalibanThe ISIS boogeyman is used to justify foreign interventions on muslim countrieshttp://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?679237-The-ISIS-boogeyman-is-used-to-justify-foreign-interventions-on-muslim-countries&goto=newpost
Tue, 03 Feb 2015 14:49:42 GMTThis is NOT a conspiracy theory. I will try to explain what i mean. ISIS...

This is NOT a conspiracy theory. I will try to explain what i mean. ISIS started to become a global sensation in June when the sunnis of Iraq revolted and one of the consequenses of that revolt was to put in danger oil production in Iraq. US wanted to interfere to push back rebels who were endangering important oil facilities like the Baji facility. The problem was that the US public was hostile in a new intervention in Iraq. What do you do? Well you create a new boogeyman to justify the same war. Correctly the US administration knew that the US public wouldnt support an intervention if it said the truth(that the people who revolted were sunni tribes and ex-baathists) so they have invented a new convenient enemy called ISIS. After creating an enemy to justify intervention we can conveniently start playing the same game we played with Al Qaeda. Just like we labeled Al Qaeda every organization in the world that threatened our interests, now we do the same thing with ISIS.
This is a compilation of news that have surfaced in the recent months

In other words, because the public got tired with Al Qaeda, now we have invented a new organisation destined to justify interventions(for the next 15 years). The steps for justifying intervention are easy

1)Claim that a twitter account represents the organization(anyone can make a twitter account but it doesnt matter)
2)Publicise a declaration that "proves" that this organization has ties with ISIS
3)Justify an intervention